"If a country is to be corruption free and become a nation of beautiful minds, I strongly feel there are…

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"If a country is to be corruption free and become a nation of beautiful minds, I strongly feel there are three key societal members who can make a difference. They are the father, the mother and the teacher." — A.P.J. Abdul Kalam. Analyse.

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Kalam holds that father, mother and teacher shape the character that resists corruption, since values are formed at home and in school long before anyone holds office. The 2nd ARC report on Ethics in Governance (2007) adds that such values need transparent institutions to hold.

**Introduction**

Kalam, who credited his values to his parents and his teacher Sivasubramania Iyer, locates the root of corruption in character, which is formed at home and in school long before anyone holds office.

**How Each Shapes a Corruption-Free Mind**

1. **Father as Role Model**: Children copy conduct, so a father who refuses to pay a bribe teaches integrity; Sachin Tendulkar kept a promise to his father never to endorse tobacco or alcohol.
2. **Mother as First Conscience**: The mother shapes empathy and self-restraint, as Gandhi traced his discipline to his mother Putlibai's vows.
3. **Teacher as Shaper of Reason**: Through the **Hidden Curriculum** of fair grading, the teacher shows that rules bind everyone; Iyer defied caste orthodoxy to host young Kalam at his home.

SKETCH: flow | From Home to an Honest Nation
- Parents model conduct
- Child internalises values
- Teacher builds reason
- Citizen resists corruption
- Corruption-free nation

**Limits and Supporting Conditions**

1. **Systemic Incentives**: Individuals still bend where discretion is high and accountability low, so the 2nd ARC report on Ethics in Governance (2007) paired values with institutional reform.
2. **Role Failure**: Parents paying capitation fees or teachers abetting paper leaks teach corruption, the problem behind the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024.
3. **Policy Support**: NEP 2020 builds ethical and constitutional values into schooling, while peers and social media now compete as socialisers.

**Conclusion**

Kalam is right that these three are the first line of defence against corruption, since, as Aristotle held, we become just by doing just acts. Character built at home and in school, backed by transparent institutions, turns a corruption-free nation into a habit.

"If a country is to be corruption free and become a nation of beautiful minds, I strongly feel there are three key societal members who can make a difference. They are the father, the mother and the teacher." — A.P.J. Abdul Kalam. Analyse.

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